In many instances, the number of wall sockets available to access electrical power is inadequate. In those situations, a power strip or similar device may be used to provide additional receptacles. Generally, power strips include a strip of electrical outlets or receptacles in a housing. The receptacles in the housing are connected to an electrical cord with a plug designed to be inserted into a wall outlet. As is well known, a typical wall outlet (in the U.S.A.) is wired to provide a single-phase, 120 V, AC signal and includes three contacts: a live or hot contact (or lead or conductor), a neutral contact, and a ground or earth contact. Power strips are also known as plug boards, power boards, power bars, distribution boards, gangplugs, and multiboxes. Underwriters Laboratories Inc. (“UL”) refers to power strips as “relocatable power taps” (each an “RPT”). Hereafter, the term relocatable power tap will be used as a generic term to encompass all forms of such devices.
Although RPT's have been in use for many years, there has been some controversy regarding their use in hospitals, dental and doctor offices, and other healthcare facilities. Many healthcare facilities are faced with an increasing use of patient monitoring devices, medication dispensers, and other electrical devices that, of course, must be provided with electrical power. As a consequence, some medical facilities use RPT's to provide extra electrical outlets in order to power the increasing number of devices used in the healthcare industry. Like many electric devices, RPT's may be subject to compliance with the National Electric Code (“NEC”). In addition, customers (e.g., hospitals) and manufactures may desire that RPT's be certified by recognized agencies or testing laboratories, such as UL. However, UL has published guidelines that indicate that RPT's that undergo UL's certification are not intended for use in patient care areas of healthcare facilities even when the RPT's include individual components that meet so-called hospital grade standards.
As a consequence, many healthcare facilities are left with unsatisfactory choices: use a non-certified RPT or install additional fixed outlets (e.g., wall outlets). Of course, it is often impractical to install more fixed outlets because, for example, the installation would require cutting open walls, floors, or ceilings and running additional wiring from electrical service panels to the desired location, and these types of construction activities often require shutting down a healthcare facility. Further, using extra wall outlets is often less desirable than using an RPT because when devices are connected to wall outlets a power cord is strung or laid out from the device to the wall. When multiple devices are connected in this fashion, multiple cords presenting multiple tripping and obstruction hazards are present in the healthcare area. In contrast, by their very nature, RPT's allow multiple cords to be connected to a single location (the group or strip of receptacles of the RPT). Further, the RPT may be placed on, e.g., an equipment cart, and a single power cord (the RPT's cord) run or routed to the wall outlet.